Feeding disorders can have very severe short- and long-term outcomes in children (Manikam, & Perman, 2000). The goal of this proposed research project is to quantitatively describe developmental changes in jaw performance for chewing. Jaw movements associated with early chewing will be studied kinematically in typically developing infants ranging in age between 4 and 24 months, as well as adults, using a 3D computerized movement capture system. Clinical models describing the ontogeny of chewing have advanced the notion of early biases in mandibular working space for chewing, but have received little empirical validation. This proposal addresses the following research questions: 1). Does the developmental course of chewing follow the putative course that has been advanced in clinical models? 2). Do early functional biases in mandibular coordinative organization influence the form of early chewing patterns? 3). How stable is the act of early chewing? It has been proposed that early chewing is a very stable motor behavior, which some suggest make chewing a suitable precursor to speech (MacNeilage & Davis, 1990). The results of this kinematic investigation will provide a quantitative description of chewing development, which will not only advance knowledge regarding the development of feeding skills, but will provide a normative baseline from which to gauge the severity of chewing disorders in children. The results from these analyses combined with existing data on early speech movements may also be useful for speculating about the suitability of chewing as a precursor for early speech.